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NBA fate rests with Jawai

Emma Greenwood

Wednesday, June 4, 2008

© The Cairns Post

 

NATHAN Jawai will spend the next three weeks shaping his fate in the NBA draft.

After two weeks of intense training at the Abunassar Impact Basketball centre in Las Vegas, Jawai heads to Oakland today fit and raring to perform for prospective NBA teams.

He starts the first of as many as 15 trials over the next 22 days with a workout for the Golden State Warriors tomorrow.

That will be followed by workouts in Seattle and Sacramento on Friday and Saturday.

Cairns Taipans assistant coach Aaron Fearne, who is in the US with Jawai, said the Bamaga product had cranked up the intensity at training in Las Vegas last week after overcoming a quadriceps strain.

"That was good to see for him to be able to get after it and it gave him some confidence," Fearne said.

Jawai has been training with several other draft candidates as well as NBA and European players in Las Vegas.

Fearne said the presence of three other forward/centres predicted, like Jawai, to be late first-round draft selections had helped the Taipans MVP to settle in.

"Without a doubt he holds his own," Fearne said of workouts Jawai took part in with Marreese Speights (Florida), Kosta Koufos (Ohio State) and Serge Ibaka from the Congo.

"Out of the four of them he's more NBA ready."

Fearne said the Vegas experience had been valuable. "Just the level of competition here…you just couldn’t have developed that environment in Cairns," he said.

"He's on the eve of working out for NBA teams to play in the best league on the world.

"Bottom line is he's definitely nervous, anxious, excited, but there'd be a problem if he didn't have that.

"Of the 80-100 guys that are going to be working out for NBA teams over the next few days, they're all nervous and Nate's no different."

 


Time of reckoning: Nathan Jawai heads to Oakland today for the start of his NBA trials in an attempt to get drafted.


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